Improvement in wagon-brakes



l. @grin CHARLES M. LUEKIN, or UNITY, NEW HAMrsHIEE.

IMPROVEMENT IN WAGCN-BRAKES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 119,524, dated October 3, 1871; antedated September 25, 1871.

To all whom it may concern:

Beit known that I, CHARLES M. LUEKIN, of Unity, in the county of Sullivan and State of New Hampshire, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Wagon-Brakes; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the annexed drawing making a part of this specification, in which- Iiigure l is a side sectional view of my invention. Fig. 2 is a plan or top view of the same with a section of the body detached.

Similar letters of reference indicate correspon ding parts in both figures.

This invention. consists in attaching a brake to a wagon in such a manner that the brake is forcibly applied to the wheels by means of the momentum of the wagon wh en the team holds back in descending a grade, and when it draws the brake is removed from the wheel, as herein fully shown and described. The object of this invention is to obtain a self-acting wheel-power brake to assist the team when descending a hill.

To enable those skilled in the art to fully understand my invention, I will proceed to describe it E represents the pole to which the team is attached. `A the forward axle; Gr G, the forward wheels, the axle A being connected with the body F by means of a pivot-bolt, el, rocker M, gudgeons c c, friction-rollers g g, and guide-staples h h and the body F is connected with the axle B to which the wheels H H are attached. The rub-blocks C C are firmly attached to the cross-bar N, which is suspended from the pivots a a on the body F by the suspension-rods D D, which are slotted at the upper end lo and jointed at the lower end b to the cross-bar N, so

as to admit of the adjustment of C C to the wheels H H. The cross-bar N is jointed to the reach E in such a manner as to admit of the adjustment of the rub-blocks C C to the wheels H H when operating, and when drawn oft' to assume a proper position relative to that of the wheels H H. The reach E is rmly attached to the rocker M, so as to retain it in its proper position. At the ends of the rocker M are placed gudgeons l Z, upon which the friction-rollers g g are placed, and on which the body F freely moves backward and forward, the guide-staples p p being sufficiently wide to admit of the proper movement of the gudgeons Z l, which pass loosely through them. The button K is attached to body F by means of a bolt orV standard, o, upon which it freely moves, and when turned across the body at right angles it allows the rocker M to slide back, so as to apply rub-blocks C (l to the wheels, as herein fully described; but when it is desired to prevent the brake from operating the rod q should be drwn in end through the loop s by means of the ring p, which turns the button K around, so that the end 1' will rest against the rocker M, holding it in drawing position. The spring L is attached at its ends to the rocker M, and in the middle it rests against the standard 0, thereby keeping the rocker M forward in the guide-staples h h, so as to prevent the rub-blocks C C from dropping upon the wheels H H in passing over rough surfaces. This arrangement is such that when the team draws the rocker M is drawn forward to the front side of the guide-staples h h, and the rubblocks O C are drawn forward so as to clear the wheels H H; but when the wagon is descending a grade, and the team is holding back, the rocker is moved back so as to apply, the rubblock C C to the wheels'H Hfand the motion of the wheels carries them downward, and being hung within the periphery of the wheels the pressure of the rub-blocks-is increased by their own motion. When the wagon is standing still and the team is backed up therrub-blocks C C are applied to the wheels, and by them in their backward motion carried up against the body, and the suspension-rods D D, being slotted at their upper ends k 7c, slide backward on the pivots a a, thereby relieving the wheels of the pressure of the brake to such an extent that the wagon is easily backed when unladen without turning the button K.

I do not claim attaching a brake to a wagon, for that is an old and well-known device, but

I do claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent- The combination of a movable rocker, M, gudgeons e e, rollers g g, guide-staples h h, reach E', cross-bar N, rub-blocks C C, suspension-rods D D, pivots a a, spring L, loop s, rod q, bolt o, and button K, the whole constructed and arranged substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

UHAS. M. LUFKIN.

Witnesses:

MATrrE E. LUFKIN, EVA M. BURG-E. 

